The skull was found near the Heilongjiang River, whose name means "Black Dragon River". Therefore, the hominid was informally designated as the "dragon man", writes Mir24.
The remains were found in 1933 during the construction of the bridge. But it wasn't until 2021 that scientists determined that the skull belonged to a representative of a previously unknown species of the genus Homo.
Homo longi did not look like anatomically modern humans. He had a huge head, square eye sockets, flat low cheekbones and huge teeth. Nevertheless, scientists believe that he was a close relative of Homo sapiens - closer than Neanderthals.
Brazilian expert Cicero Moraes recreated the appearance of the "dragon man" for the first time during the experiment. He created a digital model of the skull based on data from the 2021 study. He filled in the missing fragments based on the remains of another ancient human, Homo erectus. The soft tissues were recreated on the model of modern humans and chimpanzees.
As a result, the specialist obtained an "anatomically consistent" skull based on objective data and reliable modeling methods. He also added some artistic details such as skin color and hair.
Calculations showed that the head circumference of Homo longi was 65.1 centimeters - more than that of all other known hominids. According to scientists, the large body size could be associated with adaptation to the frosty weather of the region, reports Ortog Online.
